NATO vows response if infrastructure attacked, indicates pipeline hit by sabotage

NATO says it would retaliate for any attacks on the critical infrastructure of its 30 member countries as it suggested that damage to two gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea is the result of sabotage.

“Any deliberate attack against Allies’ critical infrastructure would be met with a united and determined response,” NATO ambassadors say in a statement Thursday. They say that the damage to the pipelines between Russia and Germany “is of deep concern.”

The alliance also says that “all currently available information indicates that this is the result of deliberate, reckless, and irresponsible acts of sabotage” and that the leaks are causing risks to shipping and “substantial environmental damage.”

The Swedish coast guard on Thursday confirms a fourth leak on the Nord Stream pipelines off southern Sweden.